Mackie v. Rankin

87 F. Supp. 614, 1949 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2086
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Michigan
DecidedOctober 24, 1949
DocketNo. 8242
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 87 F. Supp. 614 (Mackie v. Rankin) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Michigan primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mackie v. Rankin, 87 F. Supp. 614, 1949 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2086 (E.D. Mich. 1949).

Opinion

KOSCINSKI, District Judge.

Plaintiff filed this suit for damages on June 11, 1949, against defendants herein, claiming that while she was a passenger in a motor vehicle known as a jeep owned by defendant, Charles Rankin, and operated by defendant, William J. Bradford, Jr., the jeep overturned and caused her injuries.

[615]*615The jurisdictional ground is stated to be diversity of citizenship. Plaintiff alleges that she is a citizen and resident of the State of Michigan, that defendant, Charles Rankin, is “a citizen and resident of the State of Tennessee,” and that defendant, William J. Bradford, Jr., is “a citizen and resident of the State of Illinois.” The jurisdictional amount is alleged.

Returns of service, attached to the summons, on file in this cause, indicate that both defendants were served with the summons and complaint by leaving copies thereof with Harold E. Bradshaw, Deputy Secretary of State of Michigan, at Lansing, Michigan. An affidavit of service made by plaintiff’s attorney, was also filed showing that both defendants were served with copies of the summons and the complaint, by registered mail, the envelope to Charles Rankin having been addressed to him at 528 Main Street, Knoxville, Tennessee, and the one to William J. Bradford, Jr., at 3742 Ashland Avenue, Chicago, Illinois. The return receipts are attached to this affidavit, one signed “Chas. Rankin” by “Kate Bowman,” and the other “Wm. J. Bradford, Jr.,” by “John J. Schwab.”

While not so alleged in the complaint, service of summons was evidently made under Act 80, Public Acts of Michigan for 1929, as amended, Sec. 9.1701, M.S.A.,1 providing for service of summons on nonresidents whose automobiles are operated on and cause injuries to others on Michigan highways. Service of process under State statute is authorized under Rule 4 (d) (7), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, 28 U.S.C.A.

Both defendants appeared specially by counsel and each filed a motion to quash service of summons on the ground that he was a resident of the State of Michigan at the time of the accident and at the time of the alleged injuries, and that, therefore, the statutory provisions for service of process on nonresidents do not apply as to him. Defendant Bradford further claims that service upon him is not effective under the statute, for the reason that notice of such service and a copy of the summons were not served upon him as provided by said Act.

Defendant, Charles Rankin, filed an affidavit in support of his motion, admitting ownership of the jeep and the fact that it [616]*616was being operated under a Michigan motor vehicle license. He further deposes that on July 20, 1946 and for a number of years prior thereto he was a resident and citizen of the State of Michigan, that he formerly resided at Grand Rapids, Michigan, that on June 1, 1946 he completed the sale of his home in Grand Rapids and moved into a cottage at Holland, Michigan, and that he was living and residing in said cottage until September 15, 1946, at which time he moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, that on July 20, 1946 he was not a resident or citizen of the State of Tennessee but that he was a resident and citizen of the State of Michigan, and that during the entire summer of 1946 he had a substantial part of his furniture and household goods at Holland, Michigan, and that his various automobiles, including the jeep in question, had Michigan license plates and deponent had a Michigan driver’s license.

From answers to interrogatories submitted by plaintiff to defendant Rankin it appears that he was born in Michigan and lived here all his life until September 15, 1946, that he represented several furniture-manufacturing factories located both in and out of the State of Michigan as exclusive sales representative since the year 1939 and maintained an office and his mailing address at his residence in Michigan and that on the date of the accident his office and mailing address were his residence at Macatawa Park, Michigan! He further stated that he was offered a position in the home office of the C. B. Atkin Company of Knoxville, Tennessee, one of the factories he represented, which would require removal to Knoxville, Tennessee, and he felt it desirable to accept the offer on condition he would not be required to give up his work in Michigan and start on his duties in Knoxville until October or November of 1946, that he first offered his home in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for sale on January 15, 1946, but that it was actually sold on June 1, 1946 with July 1, 1946 occupáncy, and that he thereupon shipped a part of his furniture to Knoxville, Tennessee, and placed it in storage, but retained a portion of it to make habitable as a residence a furnished cottage which he rented at Macatawa Park, Michigan, as it would have to be his home for four months before he moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, that he continued as sales representative in the State of Michigan for the C. B. Atkin Company until September 14, 1946 and maintained his office at his residence at Macatawa Park until he assumed his duties as vice-president of that company in the home office in Tennessee on October 1, 1946, and that since November 30, 1947 he has been vice-president and sales manager of this company at their home office. He also stated that he moved to Tennessee for business purposes only about September 15, 1946 and has lived there since that time, but that he has no definite contract with his firm and will, therefore, remain in Tennessee only so long as his present business requires him to do so.

From this information it is apparent that defendant Charles Rankin continued his residence in the State of Michigan until September, 1946. Although he made preparations to leave this state to live in Tennessee, his intent was to remain here until October or November of 1946 and then to become a resident of Tennessee for purposes of his business. Under the showing made, therefore, he was actually a resident of the State of Michigan on the date of the accident, July 20, 1946, and the provisions of the statute providing for substituted service on nonresidents are inapplicable as to him and service of process upon him under the provisions of that statute was invalid. 61 C.J.S., Motor Vehicles, § 502(4); Wood v. White, 68 App.D.C. 341, 97 F.2d 646, certiorari denied 304 U.S. 578, 58 S.Ct. 1048, 82 L.Ed. 1541.

The affidavit of defendant William J. Bradford, Jr., in support of his motion to quash service of summons states that he resides and is domiciled in the State of Florida, having resided there continuously since 1946, that on the date of the accident he was domiciled in the County of Ottawa, State of Michigan, that he was then employed in construction work at Macatawa, Michigan, that for several years prior to July 20, 1946 (except for the period of his service in the armed forces of the United States) he was so domiciled and residing [617]*617and continued to reside in Michigan until September 1946 when he took up his residence at Coral Gables, Day County, Florida, where he continued to live up to the present time. He admits he was the driver of the jeep on July 20, 1946.

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Bluebook (online)
87 F. Supp. 614, 1949 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2086, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mackie-v-rankin-mied-1949.